Battles of Love
by PetitDejeuner
Summary: She's the best thief in the world. He's the best spy his agency's ever had. He's sent to capture her. How to catch a thief? Play their game. Along with their partners, Kori Anders and Richard Grayson will fight the battles of love. [AU]
1. Hide Your Face So No One Will Find You

**Author's Note: **LYKEOMGZANOTHERFANFICTION!1one

Yeah... the writing bug has bitten. AU fluffy goodness, man. Can't get enough.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Teen Titans. Damn.

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**Chapter One-- _Hide Your Face So No One Will Find You..._**

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A flash of red ducked behind a wall cautiously as two museum guards passed by. Smiling slightly, she took something out of her pocket and threw it next to the guards. A small puff of gray smoke emitted from the pellet, and the two men slumped to the floor, unconcsious.

The young woman, dressed all in black,chuckled slightly and motioned to her companion-- a violet-haired and violet-eyed girl of the same age-- to join her. The two silently walked into a museum room, approaching a large glass box with a sparkling green gem inside. The violet woman took out a small pocket mirror from her belt and placed it into the air above the case, deflecting any invisible lasers that might have guarded it.

The red-haired woman took the gem out of its case with fluid ease. As her friend placed the case back in and removed the mirror, the redhead reached into her pocket. She withdrew a single white rose. As the violet woman started to leave, the other one put the rose next to the case. She gazed at it, laughed softly-- a beautiful, musical laugh-- and dashed after her violet-haired cohort.

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Kori Anders placed the gem onto a small tablet coated with black velvet and watched in satisfaction as the tablet sunk into the floor, disappearing from sight. She turned to the violet-haired woman, her partner in crime, Rachel Roth. "Well?" she asked, her strange, exotic accent floating in the room. "What do you think? It does go beautifully with my eyes, does it not?" And yes, that was true-- for the twenty-year-old's sparkling emerald eyes rivaled the shine of the gem she had stolen.

Rachel smiled wryly, twisting her purple hair into a ponytail with a black scrunchie. "Sure, Kori. Sure." She flopped on the white couch, surveying the room for the remote control and turning on the TV.

Kori grinned and hopped next to her friend, watching as a lovestruck woman watched in a heartbreak as her lover courted another. "Why does she not just... what is your American saying? 'go for it'?" Kori questioned, her naievete once again playing a full part on her personality.

Rachel sighed. "It's not that easy for a girl to just march up and tell a guy she loves him," she said with a slight roll of her violet eyes, grabbing a handful of popcorn from the bowl next to them and stuffing it into her mouth.

"Why ever not?" Kori asked. "I could do it."

Her companion chuckled. That was something. Rachel never laughed. "No, you couldn't, Kori."

"Of course I could!" Kori's haughty indignance was rather humorous. "I have faced numerous spies and assassins, heroes and the like, and have defeated them all! I am sure I could tell a man I loved him."

Rachel sighed. "Whatever, Kori. We'll see." Was it Kori's imagination, or was there veiled humor in Rachel's statement?

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"It's happened _again_!"

A fist slammed down on the metal table, coffee spilling out of a mug that had been shaken by the fist. A maid hurried to clean it up, and the man sighed. "I can't believe it."

"Can't believe what?"

A thin, muscular man stepped into the room. At twenty-one, Richard Grayson wassimply drop-dead gorgeous. His black locks were spiked abnormally with vast amounts of hair gel, and his skin was still glowing from his summer tan. He was very muscular, but not overly buff. His ever-present sunglasses on his nose and a leather jacket flung carelessly over his shoulder, Dick strolled casually into the room. Oh, yes-- along with being supreme lifeguard material, Richard 'Dick' Grayson was also one of Mr. Alfonzo's top spies.

"Yeah, and dude, what's happened again?"

Garfield Logan, a slightly smaller spy, and Dick's ever-faithful partner, stepped out from behind his friend. Garfield Logan, or 'Gar', as he was affectionately called, wasn't exactly Richard's kind of cute-- he was just... cute. Little-boyish and a prankster for life, Gar had dyed his hair green the moment he left home. Gar was a strict vegetarian with olive skin and a love for tofu. His deep, mossy green eyes sparkled with a boyish mischief as he hitched up his loose khaki pants and tugged at his red shirt.

The man, Mr. Alfonzo, looked up. "Oh, hello, boys. Sit down, please." He pressed a button on his silver desk, and a couch popped up out of the ground, right under Gar and Dick, causing them to sit immediately. "Now, guys, I have a mission for you. This will be..." He paused. "Difficult. Very difficult."

"Lay it on us, man. We can take anything!" Gar said, grinning proudly as he leaned back on the cushions. Dick grinned and nodded his agreement.

"Well, then," Alfonzo smiled, his balding head gleaming in the light of the room. He pressed another button, and a small clip of video from a museum camera filled a screen behind him.

Two figures dressed in black leapt into the room, one with shocking and beautiful red hair, the other with a pretty violet. The red-haired girl stepped into the light, and Dick stifled a gasp. Bright green eyes stared out into the distance. _Beautiful eyes_, he thought suddenly, then immediately snapped the thought shut.

Gar, however, was fixated on the violet woman, whose eyes gleamed as the redhead grabbed the gem. The green-eyedgirl left a white rose next to the now-empty case, and dashed away.

"That," Alfonzo declared as the image rewinded and fixed on the image of the redhead as she stared at the gem, "is the girl you two are after. Along with her partner. We have extremely limited information about these two-- they are defnitely master thieves and assassins. However, they do have a bit of an arrogant streak... to make their presence known, the redheaded girl always leaves a white rose. It's like their trademark."

Alfonzo paused, sipping some coffee. "They just stole a priceless gem from the Nightwing museum. It's incomparibly terrible, as this is the record one hundreth heist they've pulled off, along with five murders."

"Not afraid to get their hands dirty, are they?" Dick said with a smirk. "You want us to capture them?"

"Yes," Alfonzo said. "By force, by foul play, by seduction, by whatever. Just get them in our prison hold. These two are extremely dangerous." He cleared his throat. "Now, if you'd adjourn to the other room, Victor will show you all the info we have on those two."

Victor Stone, resident football star and computer nerd, was their hacker. Whatever they needed, they could ask him, and he'd look it up for them in less than five minutes. He was amazing with computers, and equally brawny. A proud African-American, Victor was also what he considered a 'player', having dated numerous girls at the same time and dumping all of them.

Dick and Gar nodded, going into the adjourning room. Victor looked up as they entered, his gray eyes greeting them warmly. "Yo, guys! I heard you needed info on those deadly chicks."

Gar grinned. "Yeah. They sound pretty cool. You know-- for criminals."

Dick rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses. "Anyway... what do we have on them?"

Victor shrugged and held up two thin pieces of paper. "This was all I could get. They're really good-- no one's ever stopped them before."

Gar sat down in a wheeled desk chair and spun. "Well, let's get down to business. What's up with these two babes?"

Vic scanned the sheet with more writing on it. "The purple-haired one is called 'Rae' by her companion, which we're guessing is a nickname for 'Rachel'. She was also once called 'Roth', so we're expecting that's her surname. Someone actually got a really good picture of this Rachel girl." He gave them a slightly blurred photo of a pale girl with shoulder-length violet hair and matching eyes. Her face had a sort of haunting prettiness to it, and Gar was immediately enchanted.

"Cool," the green-haired man mumbled. Dick rolled his eyes again. "And the redhead?"

"There's a lot less known about her. She's a really successful theif. No name to be found at all-- but someone, before getting pounded nearly to an inch of his life, saw her face when he pulled down her ninja mask. He can't remember anything but shocking green eyes and an exotic, foreign face, so she was afterwards known as 'the Green-eyed Beauty' in the underworld."

Dick nodded, taking the two sheets and the picture. "Let's go back to the flat, Gar. We can talk about this there." He waved at Victor. "Thanks, Vic."

"No prob, man. Call me up anytime."

Gar and Dick turned and left the room.

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So, what do you think? Does it suck? Do _I _suck? Leave those comments!


	2. I Say Never Trust Anyone

**Author's Note**: WOW... Holy lotsa reviews for one chapter, Batman! OFF TO THE FANFICTION-CAVE! 

Don't mind me, I had more than the required amount of sugar today... -'tis Friday-

_-Koriander-Grayson-_ -- I'm sorry I gave up on Come What May. I just didn't have a lot of inspiration for it. However -sigh- I know I'll finish it, because I can't stand to see anything unfinished. No worries.

_sugarland31_-- Aw, thanks. I'm glad it doesn't suck. :3

_Rose Mage_-- Yeah, BB/Rae is my second favorite couple... (after RobStar, of course. :P)

_april4rmH-town_-- Thanks:D

_blufirestar_-- Yeah, that was an introduction, wasn't it?

_xox.Annie Potter .xox_-- Glad you like it! Major kudos to you!

_samanthe2121_-- Thanks, I'll try!

_kay jolyn_-- Yeah, Gar does seem huggable, doesn't he? -glomps BB plushie- :3

_KorrianderX'Hal_ -- Yeah, I try to make it in-character.

_Sango-is-alone-- _Thanks! I like your username... Inu-Yasha fan?

_Fuzzytoesocks_-- Um... it is in story form...

_starangel4eva_-- Yeah, it is 007-like. XD

By the way, a free virtual cookie to anyone who guesses where I get the chapter titles from!

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own Teen Titans. I own Alfonzo, though. :P

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**Chapter Two**-- **_I Say Never Trust Anyone_**

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For once in her lifetime, Kori Anders was bored.

And not just oh-there's-nothing-to-do-bored.

Hair-tearing, tree-hugging, computer-bashing bored.

Kori was suffocating on the fact that there was nothing to do.

Rachel had left to go to the grocery store... ("I don't trust you with grocery shopping, Kori, you'd buy out the store..."), nothing was on TV, she'd read her collection of magazines at least twice, the local gym was closed, and there were no movies in the theater. And as for trying to read Rachel's books?

_Psh. I would rather be alive_, Kori thought to herself dully as she traced the dark, dusty novels lettering with a long index finger. Sighing, she trudged to the living room and flopped on the couch, laying her head back on the arms of it and absently braiding her hair.

**BOOM!**

A huge explosion flipped the couch and pinned Kori under it before she could get up and see what had happened. Trying in vain to push up the heavy piece of furniture, Kori coughed as dust seeped through the cracks. Her mind raced. _What ishappening?_ she wondered silently, still pressing fruitlessly against the couch pillows above her.

"Ma'am?" An extremely nervous voice filtered in through the couch. "Ma'am, are you... alive?"

Kori coughed. "Yes, just barely," she replied angrily. "What hashappened?"

The voice was a teenager's. "Well, I'm not sure, ma'am. I was putting this letter in your mail slot and it... exploded."

Kori cursed under her breath. "I am trapped under the couch... will you help me, please?"

Although she couldn't see it, the paperboy nodded and helped her heft the couch up a little so that she could roll through and get up, brushing the dust and rubble off of her. Kori surveyed the room and sighed. When she'd wished for excitement, this wasn't exactly what she'd been thinking of. She thanked the paperboy and said she'd take care of it later. Still looking apprehensive, the boy nearly ran out of the crumbling hole in her doorway, throwing her mail into her outstretched hands.

Kori saw one letter badly singed and took it, dropping the rest of the bills and ads to the floor. The envelope was a thick parchment, with elegant lettering spelling Rachel's name and 'Green-Eyed Beauty' on the front, with no return address.

Frowning, Kori opened the envelope and withdrew the paper within, reading carefully.

Misses Raven and 'Green-eyed Beauty'...

Pardon the way of getting your attention; I admit, blowing out the wall is not usually my style. However, there are some businesses that I would like you two to take care of... meet me and my partner at the bench in the park at five Elm street at precisely midnight.

Kori scowled at the letter. "Insurance had better pay for this," she muttered angrily, throwing the letter to the floor.

"What the _hell_ did you do, Kori?"

Kori turned around to see Rachel, grocery bags in her arms, fuming.

"I can explain..."

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Midnight.

A heavy nightly carpet stretched over the sky as Rachel and Kori walked towards Elm street. They had been disguised, however; Kori's hair was a plain, straight brown, and her eyes a dull blue, but that hardly dented her beauty-- Rachel now had hazel eyes and black hair, having refused to dye it blonde.

Kori looked up. "I hope it does not rain. The dye will wash off every time it is exposed to wetness..."

Rachel nodded. "What are our names again?" she questioned, turning a corner.

"Carey Anderson and Raven Richardson," Kori answered, tucking her hands into the pockets of her dark green jacket.

Rachel scowled. "Raven? Who has a name that sounds like a bird?"

Kori laughed softly. "You do, I suppose." She looked around a corner. "There they are," she whispered. Two men that looked about their age were seated on a bench. One with black, spiky hair, the other with green. Kori giggled. "That one with green hair... he looks very humorous, does he not?"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "He's a riot. Come on." She nodded to Kori, and they walked to the bench. The two men instantly stood up. The green-haired one had forest green eyes and a childish smile. The other one wore sunglasses, and Kori frowned. Eyes were the windows to the soul... and yet he hid his.

"Ladies," the black-haired one spoke up, his voice smooth as silk. "Thank you for coming."

Kori's eyes narrowed. "We could hardly say no... I do not think our insurance would cover another explosion." She stared pointedly at them.

The green one laughed. "I told him it was a bad idea..."

"Then it's your fault?" Rachel spoke up angrily. "That cost us--"

"-- a mere two cents compared to what you'll be getting on this assignment," the sunglass-wearing man cut in smoothly.

Still glaring, Kori stared into his covered eyes. "Who are you two?"

"My name's Dick," the black-haired one said, holding out his hand. Kori took it, shaking it with a grip so tight it took all of Dick's pride not to wince.

"Hey, ladies, the name's Gar," the green one said, waggling his eyebrows and making Kori giggle. Rachel rolled her eyes and took his hand, but instead of shaking it, he leaned over it and breathed lightly on her fingers. "Mi'lady," he said in a deep voice. Kori giggled again, and Rachel groaned through her teeth.

"I am Carey, and she is Raven," Kori answered politely, still shooting daggers with her eyes at Dick, who merely smirked and faced the other way. "What is this mysterious mission we are being offered?"

Gar spoke up before Richard could retort with a nasty comment. "It's a tracking down mission. Sort of a search-and-destroy. This guy we're going after is unknown... but he's been creating mysterious medicines that make people sicker. They're called 'X's."

Rachel raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry... we're going to be helping the people? Usually, we hinder them. At least."

Richard laughed. "Nah. We're going to take them for ourselves."

"And we will be paid...?" Kori asked, looking at Dick with a scowl.

"A hundred thousand."

Rachel and Kori gaped. "A-- a hundred thousand?" Kori whispered. Her tone changed abruptly as she noticed a laugh tugging at Dick's throat. "Only a hundred thousand?" she sighed. "I suppose that will have to do. We accept." She returned Dick's self-righteous stare.

Rachel glanced at her friend. "We do?"

"Of course we do!"

Both Gar and Rachel watched the two next to them glare at each other for a moment. Rachel sighed, turning to Gar. "I guess we accept, then. When do we start?"

Gar snapped to. "Uh... oh, yeah! Tomorrow afternoon we'll meet here again. Friend going for a walk or something, that's our cover. Be in normal civillian clothes, or you might attract attention. We're going to split up and look around."

Rachel nodded and tugged on Kori's arm, leading her away. Gar chuckled softly before doing the same to Richard.

The bench was empty; the canvas of black still stretched across the sky; and the stars twinkling, as if laughing at the four that had met beneath them.


	3. Choking On Your Alibi

**Author's Note:**

_april4rmH-town_-- Yeah, they don't like each other. But that'll change a little in this chapter... ;)

_KorrianderX'hal_-- Haha, yeah. They glare a lot. And Slade's going to appear in the storyline somewhere around here...

_samanthe2121_-- Thanks, I'll try!

_blackfphoenix_-- Yeah, I'm sometimes not good with the long chapters... sorry about that. -sweatdrop-

_starangel4eva_-- You didn't? How? Just tell me, and I'll try to make it easier to understand. ;)

_princesslali2148_-- Wow, thanks! I'm continuing, I'm continuing!

_smilynae1_-- Welp, thanks! I appreciate all of these reviews, you know-- it's really awesome of you guys. -gives out cookies-

**Disclaimer:**

(To the tune of the stingray's song about zones in Finding Nemo) Oooooh, what does Aine own, she owns, she owns, what does she own in the er-- eeeee? Not Teen Titans, unfortunately.

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_**Chapter Three-- Choking On Your Alibi**_

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Richard grumbled angrily to himself as he paced around the bench. Around and around. Circle after circle. Pace. Pace. One way, then another.

"Dude, you're making an imprint on the grass!" Gar said, putting a hand to his spinning head.

Dick glared at him. "They're late!" he exclaimed angrily, as a way of explanation. He tapped his watch, emphasizing his statement.

Gar rolled his eyes. "They're girls, aren't they?"

"That we are."

Dick turned around, fuming. "Finally!" he burst out. "We've been waiting for twenty minutes."

"Chill," Rachel growled. "We were busy." She was wearing jeans and a black T-shirt, a hemp choker with blue beads around her neck.

"With what? Heading off World War Three? Making a computer?" Richard glared at them from behind his sunglasses.

Kori sighed. "We were on the telephone with an insurance company. There were really very interested about the _hole in our doorway_." She glared right back at Richard, her eyes challenging. Kori was wearing a pair of white capris and a light green polo. There was a pale yellow tie belt around her waist, and her newly-died brown hair was in a loose bun, strands of hair falling into her face.

Dick scowled and tugged at his red shirt. "Whatever. Let's just go."

The four walked towards the town, not talking, just glancing/glaring at one another. "Let's go into that drugstore," Gar said, breaking the tension. "They might have something on the X pills." He pointed at a small shop that said 'Slade's Pharmacy' in bold black letters. They entered the store. A middle-aged man with a hard face and an eyepatch over one eye looked up from the counter. There was a decidedly sinister air about him.

"This is Slade's Pharmacy," the man said. "I am Slade. Can I help you?" The tone of his voice told them that he didn't want to help them at all, but Dick spoke up anyway.

"Yeah," he said. "My friend says that he bought those 'X' pills here. What do they help with?"

"Anything," Slade said smoothly, his hard voice sending chills up the group's spines. "Headache, stomachache, cold. It helps them all."

"Sounds great," Rachel said. "How does it work? Any special chemicals or anything?"

Slade eyed them coolly. "Yes. It's called Yonumixv."

"Yonumixv?" Kori questioned, raising an eyebrow. "I do not think I have heard of that before."

"It's new," Slade said shortly. "Man-made."

Gar blinked. "How much for a bottle?" he asked casually.

"Fifty."

"Fifty dollars?" Kori asked, a small frown on her face.

"No, fifty doorknobs," Dick scoffed, handing Slade some money.

Slade took the bills and grabbed a bottle from the counter, putting it into Richard's hand. "Come again." It wasn't a request; it was an order.

Gar nodded. "Oh, we will!" he said hastily, ushering the others out of the store before Kori decapitated his friend.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "That guy was... interesting."

Gar shivered. "He gave me the creeps."

"What about you, little Carey?" Dick taunted the girl. "Were you scared?"

Kori forced a smile. "No, I was just going to ask you the very same thing. You seemed most frightened, Dick."

Richard laughed. "Whatever, Carey. You know you were scared... I mean, you practically jumped out of a window when the guy said 'fifty dollars'."

"Why, you jumped-up, arrogant--"

Gar cleared his throat. "Can we move on?"

Dick and Kori glared at each other for a full ten seconds before marching straight back to their companions. "Let us walk on," Kori said stiffly.

"It'll be better if we split up," Gar said, a mischevious look in his eyes. "Carey, Dick, you guys go together... Raven and I'll take the east side, you guys take the west."

Rachel shot him a look that clearly said, _What the hell are you doing?_ Gar only smiled innocently and pulled her after him, leaving Dick and Kori staring after them in disbelief.

"I'm going to kill him," Dick mumbled.

"Likewise," Kori said angrily. They looked at each other for a split second, then turned away, blushing slightly.

_What's wrong with me?_ Dick raged inwardly. Aloud, he said: "We should get going. There's some more drugstores over that way."

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Rachel sighed irritably as Gar browsed the drugstore shelves. "What are you looking for?" she asked, leaning against the counter as the old man behind it watched this with interest.

"I'm looking for a giant bandaid for when Carey slaps Dick's head off."

"Ha. Ha." Rachel rolled her eyes. In truth, she was supressing a laugh. That _was_ pretty funny... she immediately snapped out of her rare 'nice' mode and scowled. "Can we just get on with this?" She turned to the man behind the counter. "Do you have any of those 'X' pills?"

The man's face hardened. "No, I strongly dislike the drug."

Gar was instantly serious. "Why?"

"I don't like the chemical they used," the man said, shaking his head. "It was involved in some radioactive dealings a couple years ago, and I still don't trust it. Especially with a name like 'X'. Doesn't sound right."

Rachel and Gar shot each other a look. "Ah," Rachel said. "I see. Well, thank you. We'll be sure to stop by again sometime."

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Kori looked at the man behind the counter. "Excuse me, sir, but do you carry any of the 'X' pills?" she asked, her foreign accent coated with sugary-sweetness.

The man, middle-aged, smiled a little too brightly and looked Kori up and down. "I'm afraid not, miss. We ran out yesterday."

Dick came up and rested his arm on the counter. "Well, where do you get them from? We'd like some ourselves. Carey here has a bad headache."

The man made a point of staring at Kori's chest before looking up at Dick's disgusted face. "That's a trade secret, I'm afraid." He reached out and started stroking Kori's hand. "But, um, I'm sure we could arrange a deal..."

Kori growled low in her throat.

Dick immediately leapt over the counter and pinned the man to it by the throat. "You leave her alone," he said angrily. "Now, tell me... where do you get those pills?"

The man choked. "From... a man... called... Chang. Mr. Chang."

"Where do we find this Chang guy?" Dick asked roughly.

"He... has... a shop... in Chinatown... called Chang's Drugstore," the man spat out.

"Thanks." Richard leapt back over the counter to Kori, who was gazing at him with a grateful smile.

As they walked out, Kori cleared her throat. "Um... Dick?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you... ah... stand up for me back there?"

Richard looked away. "Jerks like that make me sick. Perverted bastard."

Kori blushed. "Well... I thank you."

Dick grunted. "No problem."

And they walked on.

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Rachel and Gar were browsing the shelves of a drugstore, quite bored, when suddenly a loud ringing cut through the air. Rachel jumped. Her phone!

She quickly answered it. "Rach-- er, Raven here," she said, reminded of Gar's presence as he peered at her.

"Where have you been, girl? I haven't talked to you in forever!" Tara Markov's voice cut through Rachel's eardrum like a knife. "And since when are you called Raven? I like it... it's cool. But anyway. How ya doing? We haven't talked in ages!"

Rachel sighed. Tara Markov had been her best friend in high school... till she joined the popular crowd. Why was she calling now? "Look, Tara, this isn't exactly the right time."

"Whatevs. I'll call you later!"

Rachel mumbled something incomprehensible and promptly blocked Tara's number from her phone. "Who was that?" Gar asked. "She sounded cute." He waggled his eyebrows.

Rachel immediately rolled her eyes, but inside, there was a prickling of jealousy. Shoving it away, she snapped her phone shut. "Annoying old enemy. Don't know why she called. Can we move on?"

Garfield grinned. "Sure, Rae. But if I didn't know better, I'd say you were jealous."

Rachel glared at him. "Jealous of that retarded dumb blonde? I think not."

"Oooh, a blonde?" Gar winked. "Gee, Rae, I like blondes."

For once, Rachel wished she had different hair. Snapping out of it with immense force, she turned on Garfield. "Do not call me Rae," she spat, stalking ahead.

"Hey, wait, Rae-- I mean Raven! Raven! Wait up!"

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Just so you know, I'm not a Terra basher-- I just thought that was what Raven would say about her. XD So, how was that chapter? Hope you liked it.

P.S.-- I heard about the hurricane. Man... I'm going to donate anything old that I own to all of those poor people.


	4. Your Destiny Will Keep You Warm

Your Destiny Will Keep You Warm

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"Dick?" Kori and Richard were walking down the street after visiting numerous drugstores. There had been a formal, uncomfortable silence between them after the extremely memorable first encounter, and she was getting tired of it. She had to say... something.

Dick was somewhat surprised by her voice. "What?"

Kori stopped to look at a white skirt in a store window. "I know I have already said this... but I really appreciate what you did for me... then." She turned to him. "I really appreciate it." She smiled slightly.

He let out a half-grin. "Hey, I told you, it was no problem. Creeps like that just bother me."

Kori blushed slightly and started walking again. "I know." She paused. "Me, too."

Dick flushed as well, and then mentally berated himself for it. She's an international thief with a record that's off the charts. She may look different from the thief, but I'm sure it's her. So why am I falling for her?

Suddenly, the thought struck him hard and he almost stopped walking. No, he almost stopped breathing.

I'm falling for her.

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Rachel sighed. "I give up. Can we get back to Carey and Dick? That's the five-hundredth store we've been to."

Gar nodded. "Yeah, my feet hurt like crap..." He turned his head. "Raven! Over there!"

Rachel turned her head quickly. "What is it? Did you find something?" But all she saw was an empty park with a...

"Ice cream stand," Gar drooled, pulling her by the hand.

"Oh, come on!" Rachel growled, yanking her hand away and following. She couldn't suppress a smile. Even with his childish, prankster personality, Gar was kind of cute. In a way. Not that she liked him, oh no, no, no. He was just... cute.

--

"Tofu ice cream?" Rachel asked disdainfully, looking over at his gray concoction while trying not to vomit all over her plain chocolate.

"With veggie syrup," Gar confirmed, licking the cone. "And it's totally dairy-free."

"That is possibly the most disgusting thing I've ever heard of," Rachel grunted, taking a small bite of her ice cream. "Why can't you just be normal?"

Gar's face fell, and the hand holding the ice cream dropped to his lap. "So I'm... a freak?"

Rachel looked at him. "No!" she said quickly. "No, Gar, no, you're not a freak."

The green-haired man looked away. "Of course I am. Who else eats tofu ice cream, and has green hair, huh? Answer me that."

"You're not a freak, Gar," Rachel said quietly, setting down her ice cream on the grass. "You're just different. Unique. The green hair, the strict vegetarianism... it's what makes you you." She smiled slightly. "Anything else would be completely sub-par. I like you the way you are, so don't worry about it."

Gar looked at her with a sly expression. "So, you like me?"

Rachel blanched. "What? I never said that!"

Gar laughed. "Yes, you did. You know, I think I might look on your cell phone for that Tara Markov girl's number. She sounded pretty hot to me..."

Rachel lifted her ice cream cone, and with a deft motion, smashed it into Gar's face.

Garfield lifted the cone and took his tofu ice cream. "Oh, it's on."

"No, you are not getting that on my fa-- GARFIELD!"

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Dick sighed. "Let's get back to Slade's drugstore... hopefully Gar and Raven had better luck than we did."

Kori nodded. "Correct, our search has been unsuccessful." She stretched, and the two resumed walking. They entered Slade's drugstore again. "Excuse me, sir, we would like to--" Kori looked around. The store was empty. "Sir?"

Dick frowned. "Where'd he go?" he mumbled, adjusting his sunglasses. He looked behind the counter. Nothing there but a list. "Hey, Carey, come here." He leapt over the counter, and was slightly surprised when Kori did the same. She definitely wasn't a pushover, that was for sure...

"It's a list of all exports of X pills," Richard said, scanning the list. "All of these drugstores... wow. This guy sure keeps busy."

Kori looked at the list. At the bottom, a name was written. "Red X," she read slowly. The handwriting was messy and choppy. "Perhaps this is the name of the supplier?"

"Red X?" Dick repeated. "Sounds pretty lame to me."

Kori looked around. "Dick, do you realize it is... extremely quiet in here?"

The next second, the floor went out from under them.

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Rachel wiped off the last of the ice cream with a paper towel in the ladies' room of a store and looked at her reflection. Gar was actually really funny... he had strange taste in food, but he was still a good guy. Rachel sighed, looking at the sink. Of course, she couldn't get involved in anyone... she was a master thief, after all...

Wait, did she just think of getting involved with Gar?

He was waiting outside now, probably still chuckling over thier ice cream war. She loved his laugh. It sounded mishcevious and prankster-like, just like he was on the inside. Even though some of that was to protect his sensitive side, that made him even more interesting and appealing. Rachel looked up again and brushed a strand of dyed hair behind her ear. Like it or not, she was tortured by it.

She was falling for Garfield Logan.

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Kori groaned. Where was she? Something cold and wet was dripping onto her back where her shirt hiked up, but her front was warm. She blinked her eyes open and gasped. She was on top of Dick, who was splayed out on the floor. His sunglasses were jammed up by the bridge of his nose, and her head had been on his shoulder.

Kori gently prodded him. "Dick?" When he didn't awaken, she looked up and was hit square in the face by a drop of water. She suddenly remembered her hair dye... useless if any water got on it. She looked at the ends... a red tint was appearing. "Oh, no..." At least the contacts were still in.

"Ah, if it isn't Kori Anders, master thief."

Kori whirled around, springing from Dick's warmth. The room was shrouded in shadow, though, and she couldn't see.

"Oh, yes, I know who you are. I've been watching you and Ms. Roth for a while now."

"Who are you?" Kori's voice, angry and scared, rang through the room. "Why am I here, and why did you bring him into this?"

The voice laughed. "All in good time, sweetie, all in good time..."

And then a giant red X pinned her to the wall. 


	5. We're Fading Away

**We're Fading Away**

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Kori struggled hard against the giant X, feeling a painful lump sprout from her head where she hit the wall. "Let me out!" she yelled, hoping to wake Dick and get some help.

"Eeh... not likely." A cold hand pressed against her cheek. "My, aren't you the pretty one... but so exposed, oh so exposed..." It was then that Kori realized her hair had returned to its natural fiery red. The cold fingers reached and forcefully took out her colored contacts, as well. "Ah, there are those pretty emeralds."

Kori growled. "What do you want with me?"

The man stepped into the feeble light. Kori saw a white mask with a red X over it, and black jeans, a black shirt, and a black jacket. "You're the most renowned thief in the underworld," the man stated simply, curling a lock of her hair around his fingers. "I'll have need of your services... assasinations, stealing, and the like..."

Kori reached up and slammed her feet into the man's gut. "Why would I help you?" she asked with a slight snarl. "You have captured me, pinned me to a wall... that is not a way to gain someone's trust!"

The man laughed. "Well, then. How can I get you to trust me?"

"What is your name? What are you planning to do with these 'X' pills? And why did you have Richard put into this?"

The man laughed again, and Kori burned with fury. "You can call me Red X. The X pills? They're supposed 'miracle workers', and everyone gets sick from time to time. Best of all, I can disguise them as anything... aspirin, cough medicine, whatever. And soon, the world will be at my mercy, because I'll have contaminated every medicine there is. Oh, and third... Richard Grayson? He's just in my way."

"But how? I am assisting him in finding you to get a share of these pills... would he not be your ally?"

Red X looked at her and shook his head. "Cute but clueless. You think you know this Grayson guy? He's actually a secret agent, Miss Anders... assigned the mission of taking you and Miss Roth out."

Kori's eyes widened in shock and betrayal. "And... Garfield...?" She dared not ask.

"His partner."

The foreign woman closed her eyes, as, to her shame, tears burned inside the lids. "Ah, don't cry, now," Red X said, and she could hear the smirk in his voice. He leaned close to her and lifted her chin up. He tilted his mask forward slightly and pressed his lips to hers. Kori was shocked and disgusted at the same time, but fear paralyzed her. A sharp metal object was being held against her neck. If she as much as moved her head, he'd slit her throat.

Then, a fist came out of nowhere, and Richard appeared.

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Garfield took Rachel's arm as she emerged from the ladies' bathroom, all remnants of tofu ice cream cleared from her face. He grinned at her, and she smiled back-- a truly rare thing-- and they walked together, merely enjoying one another's company, their missions at the very back of their minds.

Suddenly, Gar felt a pang of guilt. What was he doing? He was supposed to be escorting Raven (or Rachel, if she really was the thief) to prison... instead, he wanted to kiss her! _This is so messed up_, Gar thought angrily, and groaned.

Rachel turned her head. "What's up?" she asked, noticing his anguished face.

"I... nothing. Just brain freeze or something." He grinned again, but the life in it was gone. Not wanting to press, Rachel nodded.

They were walking through a maze of parked cars, trying to get to a store, when Gar suddenly stopped, making Rachel run into him. "What is it?"

"Do you hear that?"

Rachel listened, and there it was-- the unmistakable tik-tik-tik of a...

"BOMB!" Gar threw Rachel out of the way and covered her with himself as a huge explosion rocked the street. Debris and rubble covered the pair, and water from broken pipes sprayed over their bodies. Gar groaned. "Raven, are you okay...?"

Rachel nodded numbly. "Oh, my God, Gar..." She pointed to his back, where he was bleeding from a shard of glass. Wincing, Gar pulled it out, and managed a weak smile.

"I'll be fine."

"Oh, Gar..." Without thinking, without caring, Rachel threw her arms around him, sobbing into his shoulder for everything... the bomb, the injury, the ice cream... the fact that she couldn't love him but was anyway...

Silently, Garfield Logan hugged her back, and they sat there, locked in an embrace, as police cars and ambulances surrounded them and the fire burning in the background.

"I love you, Raven."

He didn't know how the words came out. It just seemed suddenly right there, with the chaos in the background, with her sobbing. And he was even more shocked when he heard her reply.

"I love you, too, Gar. And... my name's Rachel."

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Richard said nothing as he cut the X with his pocket knife, and neither did Kori. She looked once at Red X, lying knocked out on the floor, and then ran after Dick, who was running down a tunnel. She grabbed his arm, stopped him.

"What?" Dick was trying to run away... from her. That hair, those bewitching eyes... Carey Anderson was Kori Anders, master thief, and he couldn't take her to prison. He just... couldn't. Then, he saw with astonishment, tears in her emerald eyes, and the eyes in question burning with anger.

"You work for a spy agency?" Kori asked incredulously, hurt and anger cutting through her words like a knife.

Richard stopped and sighed, then nodded. "Yeah."

"Why did you not tell me?" she yelled, but she knew it was a stupid question.

"Oh, well, what was I supposed to say?" Dick shouted back. "'Oh, sorry, but I have orders to take you to jail, maybe kill you if you don't come with me, and I hope we can still be friends!'? That would have worked out _really_ fucking well!"

Kori's eyes blazed. "Why did you toy with us, then? Why did you not just capture us when you first saw us?"

Dick gritted his teeth and thought up a quick excuse. "You're a great fighter-- one of the best in your field! Do you honestly think Gar and I could have taken you two on?"

"Oh, do not start with me!" she screamed. "You could have brought weapons, guns, tranquilizers... and you toy with us for another day, pretending to go on some quest for the X pills! You lied to me!"

"I lied? At least I told you my real name!" Dick shouted. "Who's Carey Anderson anyway? What's your actual name?"

Kori roared in fury and kicked at the wall, actually breaking off a piece of plaster. "MY NAME IS KORI! KORI ANDERS!" She sobbed angrily, leaning against the wall headfirst. "Kori Anders!"

Dick fell silent, breathing hard. Seeing her like this... a master thief, crying as if her life depended on it...

Kori felt strong arms encircle her waist, and against her better judgement, she fell into them, wrapping her own arms around his neck and crying softly into his shoulder.

"I am sorry."

Dick started. "For what?"

Kori looked up. She was strangely calm. "For everything. For the thievery, the spying, the... the fact that I am a criminal."

He looked down at her and brushed a stray hair off of her face. "Why are you a thief, anyway?"

She sighed, looked down. "I have had a bad childhood, you might say. And when I met Rachel... her name is not Raven... we paired up. We started to steal food, as we were both homeless, and found that we had a... what is your word? A 'knack' for it." She paused. "They say we murdered."

Richard blinked. "You didn't murder anyone?"

"No, we would never kill someone." She looked back up. "Whenever someone is murdered, people speculate... and who better to be speculated than the best two thieves in the world?" Her voice was bitter. "I am not that kind of person. What started out as a need for survival turned into a career, and I regret it. Rachel does, too. We are unable to lead normal lives."

Dick let her pull away. "Look, Kori... I'm not going to take you into jail."

She looked surprised. "Why ever not?"

"I just... can't. Not after meeting you, knowing you." He sighed, pulled his hair through. "It's... complicated."

Kori looked away. "I know."

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NOT THE END! Don't worry, still got a chapter to go. ;)


	6. We Believe and Epilogue

**We Believe**

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Gar suddenly pulled back, pushing back his messy green locks in consternation. And suddenly, as if hit by an atomic bomb, Rachel pulled back as well, shocked at what she'd said. "Damn..."

"Raven... Rachel..." Gar sighed. "I'm so sorry. I'm a secret agent... my mission was to capture you."

Rachel sat there, dirty and dusty and crying, in shock. "Wh... what?"

Gar looked up, and she saw with extreme surprise that there were tears in his eyes. "I'm... I'm really sorry, Rachel. What I said... I meant it, and I can't... I can't take you. I can't take you to jail, and if I know anything..." He smiled wryly. "Well, if my guy instincts are right, Dick can't take Carey either."

Rachel put her hand to her cheek. "What a..."

"Fiasco?"

The girl looked up and smiled slightly. "That's a good word for it." She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear-- its natural purple now-- and sighed. "I can't tell you how... absolutely wretched I am right now..."

"Actually, I can..." Gar smiled slightly and stood, helping her up as well.

Rachel looked at him and suddenly she was in his arms again, breaking down once more, her tears soaking his already-soaked shoulder. And the best part was...

He didn't mind at all.

Gar slowly brought her head up to his. He leaned forward.

No, he wasn't... he _couldn't_... Rachel closed her eyes in spite of herself. He's not going to...

And then his lips met hers.

The kiss was long, and fraught with all sorts of passion and the longing of what was yearned to be, and then it felt like it could be. Like everything in the world was right. Rachel broke apart slightly and smiled, and it was only then that they heard the fireman.

"Er... I'm guessing you two are okay?"

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Kori limped along the sidewalk next to Dick, her arm draped across his shoulder, her ankle painfully throbbing with each step. "Dick..."

"Hmm?" Dick looked at her and paused, leaning her against a wall. "What's wrong?"

She coughed. "You never show your eyes."

Dick started. _That_ wasn't what he was expecting. "Yeah. Makes it easier for people not to recognize me."

Kori looked at him piercingly with her own green eyes that seemed to stare right through the glasses. "That is not it. I can feel it."

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He was silent for so long, Kori thought he wasn't goig to answer."When I was little, my parents used to say that I had eyes as blue as a robin's egg. They called me Robin. They were trapeze artists. When they came up onto the wire, someone cut it, and they fell to their deaths." He looked at her. "I can't show these eyes anymore."

Kori looked at him sadly and suddenly embraced him, the wind blowing lightly against their intertwined bodies. "I lost my parents as well," she whispered into his ear as her hair whipped around his face. She pulled back, and gently pressed his cheek. "I feel your pain. But Dick..." Slowly, she reached up and touched the sunglasses. Just lightly, with two fingers.

"You can't hide your eyes," she said softly, looking at him. "You... you will have no soul, no real life. If you hide these beautiful... these seeing-things, you will lose all sight inside of yourself." Gently, she started pulling them down. "You must release the pain and pressure that has built up inside of you for so long."

Dick reached up and grasped her wrist. "Stop," he said hoarsely. "Please."

"_No_." The strength in her voice startled him. "Dick... Richard... you must! Just lean into it. Trust me."

"Trust..." He couldn't talk. He was paralyzed by her touch, her green eyes blazing into his hidden ones.

"Yes, _trust me_." She softly pulled them down all the way and put them into the palm of his hand. She looked up and saw them: two icy, blazing blue eyes, crystalline sparkles coming out from their hidden place. "Robin..." Kori whispered. She hugged him again, more fiercely, and then smiled slightly.

Richard suddenly smiled. It was so spontaneous, so odd, that she leapt back in surprise, wincing slightly as her ankle bent again. "Kori, thank you," he said softly. He reached down and helped her stand. It was then she realized how close they were. "Thank you so much..."

Kori blushed. "No, it was nothing... I merely wanted to see your eyes..."

Dick laughed suddenly, and grabbed her, twirling her around. "I love you, Kori Anders," he said breathlessly as he put her down. "I love you!"

Kori's eyes widened, and she flushed brightly. Why was this happening? It couldn't happen! She was... a criminal... she couldn't get involved...

And yet here she was, loving him right back. And he knew it, and they kissed, so lightly and suddenly it felt like a butterfly.

Dick blinked, and kissed her again, longer this time. They stood there, wallowing in ecstasy, their bodies together like some twisted version of yin and yang... and suddenly, Richard's cell phone rang.

He wanted to ignore it, had to ignore it.

_Damn that thing_.

He brought it out with a heavy sigh and held it to his ear. Alfonzo's voice echoed. "Richard, do you have a report? What happened?"

Richard paused and looked down at Kori. Kori held his gaze steadily, and he knew what he had to do. "Yeah, Al, we're done here. Well... first the bad news. Raven Rowth... her name wasn't Rachel..." (Here he winked at Kori, who looked confused.) "And Carey Anderson, the Green-Eyed Beauty... they fell into the river and drowned during a chase. They're taken care of." Kori looked shocked. "The good news... we got the guy who was selling those 'X' pills... and..."

Alfonzo shuffled papers. "And what?"

"And I'm retiring."

"WHAT?" The sound of coffee being spit.

"Gar's retiring, too," came a voice. Rachel and Garfield came into view, draped on one another lovingly, together.

"Yeah, Gar's retiring, too," Richard relayed, grinning.

Alfonzo gaped. "What? What happened?"

Richard grinned to Kori. "Well... we met these girls, chief. Kori Anders and Rachel Roth."

"So?"

"So... that's it."

"You're retiring just because of two cute girls?" Alfonzo roared. "You can't do this! Victor just quit, too! He met some girl named Bethany! 'Bee', he called her!"

"Yeah... we're retiring because of two cute girls. There's more, but you wouldn't belive any of it, Al." Richard leaned over and planted a soft kiss on Kori's cheek. "You wouldn't believe it."

And promptly ignoring Alfonzo's muffled protests, Richard tossed his cell phone into the river below them.

Gar spoke up first. "So... anyone up for ice cream?"

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**Epilogue**

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So, yeah, that's basically the whole story. Dick and Kori got together, and Gar and Rachel got together. Kori and Dick had their wedding a year ago, and Kori's pregnant with a girl, due in about two weeks. I think they said they'll name her Mari'kor. Nightstar in Tamaranian. I really want to go to that country.

Gar and Raven are getting married in a week, and Rae's really stressing all over the little details... the cake and everything. This Tara Markov girl is going to be a bridesmaid, but damn, that girl _talks_. Keeps mentioning this dude named 'Speedy'. Hah.

So everything's cool... we all live in a giant house. Kori and Dick on one side, Rachel and Gar on another, and me and Bee on the last. Rachel and Kori gave up their thievery, and are now working as directing managers of an art museum. Haha, guess when they were thieves, they picked up some good art tips or something.

Dick and Gar and I work different jobs... Dick works for a big telephone company, Gar's working for a tofu manufacturing and importing job, and I'm kickin' it at a software place. Still have time to wax my baby, though. Hehe.

Bee and I are doing fine... not married yet, just dating. Bee says she wants to see if I'm really the jerk I turn out to be before she settles with me. (She's joking, of course. I think.)

Speaking of which, here's my girl now... but you know the story, and I guess you guys can make it up from there!

Peace, yo--

Vic Stone

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**Final Author's Note:**

First of all, thank you SO MUCH to all of my wonderful reviewers! You guys rock! I got faithful reviews every chapter, and even a couple constructive criticisms. I'm aware that this chapter was mainly fluff, so I'm sorry if you don't like it... but I tried to wrap it up so I could get on with my other stories, hehe.

Second, I want to know: Sequel? No sequel?

Third, I want you guys to go and check out my other fic: Burdens of the Past. It's more angsty than this one, but rest assured, it will be fluff-filled as well. See you there!

_Domo arigato_!

-- Aine


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